Writing about animals is not all fluff, fuzz, and feathers. It’s a competitive genre. Annie Dillard, John Grogan, James Herriot, Laura Hillenbrand, John Steinbeck, James Thurber are just some who are enchanted with the lives of animals. We will look at excerpts from leading works in the field (fiction or nonfiction) and then we’ll discuss participants’ writing. We will be looking at some elements that make great animal essays and stories: research, objectivity, characterization, style, tone, and structure.